Apparatus for processing materials

ABSTRACT

A material processing apparatus includes coarse and fine comminuting sections and a mixing section interposed therebetween. A common drive shaft is provided for the sections. Blade members are mounted on the drive shaft in the coarse and fine comminuting sections for pulverizing incoming material. The mixing section includes a tunnel portion, a screen member, and a helical blade mounted on the drive shaft for mixing incoming materials and pressing them through the screen.

United States Patent [191' Handle et al. 2

[451 Mar. 19, 1974 APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING MATERIALS Inventors: Walter Handle, lnsel Reichenau;

Rainer Handle; Paul Latt, both of am if any Assignee: Firma Rieter-Werke Konstanz,

Constance, Germany Filed: Jan. 7, 1972 Appl. N0.: 216,011

Foreign Application Priority Data Aug. 2, 1971 Germany 2138562 US. Cl. 241/82.1 Int. Cl. B02c 19/20 Field of Search 241/25, 29, 82.1, 82,4,

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS,

3/1924 Pottratz 24l/16l X 2,229,845 1/l941 Gold .4 24l/82.4 2.531.158 11/1950 Robinson 3.323.570 6/1967 Tullock et a1 24l/82.4

I Primary Examiner-Granville Y. Custer. Jr.

Attorney. Agent, or Firm-James E. Cockfield [5 7] ABSTRACT A material processing apparatus includes coarse and fine comminuting sections and a mixing section interposed therebetween. A common drive shaft is provided forthe sections. Blade members are mounted on the drive shaft in the coarse and fine comminuting sections for pulverizing incoming material. The mixing section includes a tunnel portion, a screen member and a helical blade mounted on the drive shaft for mixing incoming materials and pressing them through the screen.

5 Claims, 1 Drawing Figure 7 l APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING MATERIALS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a processing device for crushing, comminuting and preparing materials, such as clay and sandy masses, factory wastes, and compost.

In such a device, incoming materials pass through a coarse comminuting section which is studded with grate bars and which is provided with rotating crushing blades arranged on a driving shaft. The crushing blades rotate and simultaneously pass between the grate bars. Afterwards the materials pass through a time comminuting section that is provided with a screen basket and wiper blades which squeeze the materials through the screen basket.

OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is a primary object of the invention to provide a device of the described type which combines within itself the effects of a pan grinder, a crushing mill and a mixing machine.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a device of the above-mentioned type that is equally well suited for the processing of dry, wet and frozen material, including, for example, freshly mined clay or marl, as well as moist, sticky material.

It is also a primary object of the invention to provide a device which will sufficiently comminute and intensively mix material that is obtained even in large chunks.

According to the invention the above objects, among others, will be achieved through the provision, in an apparatus of the initially mentioned type, of a mixing section, in the form of a tunnel, disposed between the coarse and the line comminuting sections. The mixing section includes a transverse screen adjoining the fine comminuting section and covering the entire cross sectional surface of the tunnel. A screw conveyer is disposed in the tunnel for mixing material which is crushed in the coarse comminuting section and squeezing this material through the transverse screen into the fine comminuting section. The crushing blades of the coarse comminuting section, the screw conveyer of the mixing tunnel and the wiper blades of the fine comminuting section are seated for rotation on a common drive shaft.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the crushing blades which succeed one another toward the mixing tunnel are disposed on the driving shaft in a manner radially offset with reference to one another. The crushing blades further include angularly disposed material-feeding surfaces which, when the drive shaft is rotated, will feed material toward the mixing tunnel.

The drive shaft is polygonally shaped, preferably octagonally. As a result, a very impact-resistant arrangement is achieved, while enabling identically-formed crushing blades to be easily assembled in a manner wherein they are relatively radially oriented.

The coarse comminuting section preferably further includes an additional break-up roller that particularly serves to scrape and dislodge moist sticky material which is inclined to settle in a feed hopper which directs incoming material to the apparatus.

comminuting section.

The housing of the coarse comminuting section has been conveniently shaped in the general form of a funnel with a cylindrical, or curved, bottom, whereby the bottom of the coarse comminuting section can be mounted for downward swinging.

The housing of the coarse comminuting section may be furtherprovided with a feed arrangement, disposed in front of and directed into the tunnel, for feeding additive substances, for example, water, sand and dye.

THE DRAWING In the drawing, an embodiment of the invention has, by way of example, been shown partiallv in section and in perspective side view.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED FORM OF THE INVENTION The apparatus according to the invention includes a coarse comminuting section A, a fine comminuting section B and a gear mechanism drive section C. The latter has been separated by an intermediate wall from the coarse comminuting section A.

The housing 10 of the apparatus has lateral walls extending convergingly, angularly downwards, i.e., generally in the form of a funnel, which walls extend atop a cylindrical or curved bottom of the housing 10. The lateral walls thus merge at their lower portion into a curved floor for the coarse comminuting section A. The driving shaft 11 in the area of the coarse comminuting section is octagonally-shaped. This shaft, besides providing a very impact-resistant mounting for a pluralityof crushing blades 12, affords the advantage of enabling simple assemblage and disassemblage of the crushing blades. This mounting arrangement further enables the crushing blades to be easily mounted on the drive shaft in a successively radially offset manner, as is illustrated.

Rotational drive for the shaft is provided by means of a one-step gear mechanism which includes a gear 13 seated on the drive shaft 11 and a power-transmitting pinion 14 that is driven by way of a belt pulley 15. In order to protect the processing apparatus and particularly the driving motor, a conventional starting and safety clutch, which is not shown, is disposed between belt pulley 15 and pinion 14,. The apparatus is additionally safeguarded against obstructions by way of a safety shear pin built into the driving pulley 15, which shear pin likewise has not been shown. Thus, should an obstruction prevent the shaft 11 from rotating, the safety clutch will disengage or the shear pin will be severed to protect the apparatus from damage.

A crushing grid is provided in the coarse comminut' ing section A, and includes a plurality of grate bars 17 which can be inserted, from the outside, into apertures of the housing 10 and are provided with suitable flanges for being screwed onto the outside of the housing.

The crushing blades 12 are arranged to pass between the grate bars 17, the latter extending inward substantially to the hubs of the crushing blades 12. The crushing blades 12, on at least one of their sides, each have a feed surface which is angled with respect to the drive shaft in a manner causing a shifting movement of material toward the discharge end of the coarse comminuting section.

It will be apparent that due to the radially-offset arrangement of the crushing blades 12 and the angularlyarranged feed surfaces, the crushing blades 12, as a group, have the effect of a continuous screw conveyor.

A short screw conveyer 18 is mounted on an intermediate portion of the driving shaft 11 adjacent the discharge end of the coarse comminuting section A. This conveyer 18 rotates adjacently to a transverse screen 19, the latter being disposed such that the material to be processed must pass therethrough before entering the fine comminuting section B from the coarse comminuting section A. The transverse screen is thus positioned at the discharge end of said tunnel and occupies the entire transverse width of said tunnel. The screw conveyer 18 is positioned to squeeze the material through the transverse screen 19 into the fine comminuting section B. In order to increase the discharge effect. the screw conveyer 18 may advantageously include two blades, separated from one another, and extending in a spiral fashion.

The screw conveyer l8 and the crushing blades 12 located nearest the discharge end of the coarse comminuting section A are surrounded by a tunnel or enclosure 20 which is of generally reduced size in relation to the cross section of the coarse comminuting section A. The arrangement and size of the tunnel 20 advantageously assures that no large chunks of material can be jammed firmly against the transverse screen 19, which could tend to obstruct and block-up the apparatus, and further assures that, within the tunnel, a particularly intensive mixing effect will be achieved.

It will be apparent, then, that the combination of the tunnel 20, the screw conveyer 18, and the transverse screen 19 define a mixing section which is interposed, and provides communication between, the coarse and the fine comminuting sections A and B. The mixing section excludes large chunks of material which might jam against the screen 19, and affords a compact, enclosed area which enables an intensive mixing of the material to be accomplished.

The coarse comminuting section A may be provided with an additional break-up roller 21 positioned at the lower end of a feed hopper 16 which may be mounted on the housing 10. The additional break-up roller 21 is particularly important in the case of processing moist, sticky material that is inclined to settle in the bottom of the feed hopper 16 since it causes such material to be drawn, or fed, into the housing of the coarse comminuting section. In the area of the coarse comminuting section A, housing can be provided with a swinging bottom.

The fine comminuting section B includes a screen basket 22 comprising a cylindrical sifting drum 22a and a front screen 22b at its extreme end. The screen basket 22 follows, i.e., lies downstream of, the transverse screen 19 of the coarse comminuting section. Rotatable within the screen basket 22 are wiper blades 23 which are attached to an end portion of the driving shaft 11, opposite the end portion which mounts the crushing blades 12. The wiper blades 23 force the material through the sifting drum 22a and the front screen 22b. Preferably, the blades 23 may include segments, not shown, that can be easily replaced and which consist of particularly wear resistant raw material at locations that are prone to wear.

The screen basket 22 is forced against the transverse screen 19 by means of a lock ring 24 and a plurality of pressure screws 25, only one of which being shown. The pressure screws 25 can be screwed through a base plate 26 that is attached by holding bolts 27 to the frame of the apparatus. The base plate 26 also contains the front bearing 26a for the drive shaft 11.

Thus, the transverse screen 19 and the screen basket 22 are both held in position through the force which is exerted on the screen basket by means of the pressure screws 25, acting through the lock ring 24.

OPERATION As material is fed into coarse comminuting section A through the hopper l6, and the drive mechanism is activated, fairly large chunks, as well as small chunks. of material are precrushed by the crushing blades 12 and are simultaneously conveyed toward the fine comminuting section B due to the orientation of the crushing blades. In front of the transverse screen 19, the material is seized by the screw conveyer l8 and is pushed through the transverse screen 19. As a result of this and the good mixing effect which occurs in the tunnel by the downstream crushing blades 12 and the screw conveyer 18, a further comminution of the material takes place in the tunnel 20. The material precrushed in this way, and after entry into the fine comminuting section B, is pushed radially forward, or outward, in the fine comminuting section B by the wiper blades 23 and also axially outwardly of the screen basket through the front screen 22b. Through this pushing or pressing out, the ejected material will comprise a very large portion, i.e., a high concentration, of finely comminuted substances.

The instant apparatus is also suited for the production of pellets. In this case, rotating cutting knives could be mounted and arranged for transversing movement across the openings in the screen basket.

In certain cases, the fine comminuting section may be omitted. In this case there will be the discharge of relatively coarse material through the screen 19. Alternatively, with the bottom of the coarse comminuting section A swung downwards, the discharge takes place through the bottom of the coarse comminuting section A.

MAJOR ADVANTAGES AND SCOPE OF THE INVENTION The invention provides a material processing apparatus in which a mixing section is interposed between coarse and fine comminuting sections. The transverse screen 19 of the mixing section affords an increased comminuting effect since all of the material passing from the coarse to the fine comminuting section will be pressed through this screen by a screw conveyer.

The screen itself is protected against obstruction by large chunks of material by means of the tunnel member 20 which surrounds the screen.

The tunnel member 20 further defines an enclosure in which rotating bladed members cooperate to impart a high degree of mixing to material passing therethrough.

The instant apparatus is further adapted for the efficient processing of even wet, sticky material due to the provision of the rotatable break-up roller 21 which assists in the feeding of such material into the coarse comminuting section.

The present invention provides a compact and efficient arrangement of elements which cooperate in a manner to impart a high degree of comminution and mixing of materials.

Although the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment thereof, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that additions, modifications, substitutions and deletions not specifically described may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. A material processing apparatus comprising: a coarse comminuting section, a fine comminuting section, a mixing section, and a common, power-rotatable drive shaft for said sections, wherein:

said coarse comminuting section includes:

a plurality of stationary grate bars, and

a plurality of crushing blades mounted for rotation on a portion of said rotatable drive shaft,

at least some of said crushing blades being positioned to pass between said grate bars during rotation thereof;

said fine comminuting section being in downstream communication with said coarse comminuting section and comprising:

a screen basket,

a plurality of wiper blades mounted for rotation on the other end portion of said rotatable drive shaft and being rotatable within said screen basket to press material received from said coarse comminuting section through openings in said screen basket;

said mixing section providing said communication between said coarse and said fine comminuting sections, said mixing section including:

a tunnel means extending between said coarse comminuting section and said fine comminuting section, a screw conveyor mounted for rotation on an intermediate portion of said rotatable drive shaft, and

a transverse screen positioned at the discharge end of said tunnel means adjacent said fine comminuting section and extending across the entire transverse area of said tunnel means;

said screw conveyer being operatively positioned adjacent said transverse screen to mix crushed materials received from said coarse comminuting section and to press such crushed materials through said transverse screen into said fine comminuting section.

2. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said driving shaft is polygonallyshaped.

3. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said coarse comminuting section fur ther includes:

a break-up roller positioned adjacent an inlet feed opening of said coarse comminuting section to cause a dislodging of moist, sticky material being fed into said coarse comminuting section.

4. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said screen basket includes:

a front screen member affording axial discharge of material from said fine comminuting section.

5. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein:

said coarse comminuting section is generally funnelshaped with a generally cylindrically-curved floor. 

1. A material processing apparatus comprising: a coarse comminuting section, a fine comminuting section, a mixing section, and a common, power-rotatable drive shaft for said sections, wherein: said coarse comminuting section includes: a plurality of stationary grate bars, and a plurality of crushing blades mounted for rotation on a portion of said rotatable drive shaft, at least some of said crushing blades being positioned to pass between said grate bars during rotation thereof; said fine comminuting section being in downstream communication with said coarse comminuting section and comprising: a screen basket, a plurality of wiper blades mounted for rotation on the other end portion of said rotatable drive shaft and being rotatable within said screen basket to press material received from said coarse comminuting section through openings in said screen basket; said mixing section providing said communication between said coarse and said fine comminuting sections, said mixing section including: a tunnel means extending between said coarse comminuting section and said fine comminuting section, a screw conveyor mounted for rotation on an intermediate portion of said rotatable drive shaft, and a transverse screen positioned at the discharge end of said tunnel means adjacent said fine comminuting section and extending across the entire transverse area of said tunnel means; said screw conveyer being operatively positioned adjacent said transverse screen to mix crushed materials received from said coarse comminuting section and to press such crushed materials through said transverse screen into said fine comminuting section.
 2. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said driving shaft is polygonally-shaped.
 3. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said coarse comminuting section further includes: a break-up roller positioned adjacent an inlet feed opening of said coarse comminuting section to cause a dislodging of moist, sticky material being fed into said coarse comminuting section.
 4. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein said screen basket includes: a front screen member affording axial discharge of material from said fine comminuting section.
 5. A material processing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein: said coarse comminuting section is generally funnel-shaped with a generally cylindrically-curved floor. 